When Bombardier Aerospace launched its newest from-the-ground-up midsize Learjet-now named the Learjet 85-the company's chief designers made two key decisions. The first, not announced until well after the launch, was that the structure-including wings, fuselage and tail-would be made of composite materials instead of the traditional aluminum used for most business jets.

Until now, Cessna's Citation Mustang "entry level" twinjet was seen as the unequivocal best of breed. While the Mustang is a fine airplane, its market dominance was not particularly difficult as every other competitor failed to gain FAA certification, slid into bankruptcy, or both.

Editor's note: Cessna suspended development of the aircraft reviewed below in April 2009 and then formally cancelled the program in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 10, 2009.

If Honda Aircraft founder, president and chief visionary Michimasa Fujino is right, when you step into one of his dealerships to put down a deposit on a HondaJet or get yours serviced, your experience will be a lot more like visiting an Acura dealer than a traditional business jet manufacturer.

Airframer Embraer entered the business aviation market in 2000 when it announced the Legacy 600, which it had derived from the ERJ-135 regional airliner. Taking a similar approach with the larger E-190/195, the Brazilian manufacturer has created the Lineage 1000.

Uber-barges, such as the 6,000-plus-nautical-mile-range Gulfstream G550 and Bombardier Global Express, are often the launch platforms for passenger comfort and avionics features that later show up on somewhat smaller, less expensive and more limited-range aircraft.

Charles Colburn, Boeing Business Jets/VIP director of marketing, was trying to explain the recent sales boom for his division's airliner-sized executive aircraft. "There's just been a tremendous rise in the number of billionaires," he said.

During an encounter with wind shear at Chicago Midway Airport on June 5, the pilot of an Eclipse 500 pushed the thrust levers (throttles) forward with enough force to cause a software error that locked both engines at full power. Unable to slow the airplane for landing, the pilot elected to shut down one engine for the subsequent landing attempt.

Last summer, Eclipse shocked aviation watchers by displaying a single-engine variant of its Model 500 twinjet VLJ. The Eclipse "concept jet," or ECJ, featured seating for four (including the pilot) and borrowed key elements from the 500, including the nose, wing, avionics and engine.

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Quote/Unquote

“"Many years ago, our company founder, Al Conklin, sold a new twin-engine business aircraft to a very successful entrepreneur. He had established a bit of a rapport with the individual and, after the sale, asked him straight out, 'How can you justify the cost of this airplane?' His reply? 'What is the cost of a divorce?'"–David Wyndham, president, Conklin & de Decker”